Russian strikes on vulnerable targets: Lieutenant General Romanenko on Dnipro HPP attack
Lieutenant General Ihor Romanenko discussed the Russian strike on the Dnipro HPP (Dnipro Hydroelectric Power Plant) and the potential for its destruction in an interview on NV Radio on March 22.
Similar structures were built during Soviet times with the potential use of nuclear weapons in mind, Romanenko explained.
"Theoretically, besides nuclear weapons, it would take several missiles," he said.
"To illustrate, take the example of the Kerch Bridge. While it is possible to damage it, completely destroying it requires a powerful strike effort. This is considering without the inclusion of missile defense systems."
Read also: ‘Under control’ — Though ablaze after RU attack, no threat of breach at Ukraine’s largest hydro dam
Romanenko acknowledged the need for more air defense resources to protect critical infrastructure, which came under heavy Russian attack on March 22.
"It is clear that these objects are called critical for a reason and need to be defended because the enemy may focus its strikes precisely on such objects," he said.
"Therefore, defense strategies must be adjusted accordingly. Given our limited air defense systems, the enemy can capitalize on this. Therefore, after the prior strike on Kyiv (March 21), they target areas that, as they believe, are likely to lack missile defense capabilities. The ones we ask our allies for."
Cruise missiles and Shahed drones, used in the attack on Ukraine, could be effectively destroyed with the help of aviation, which our partners have promised, he said. Romanenko underscored the importance of fighters as a key part of the air defense system, making them critically necessary.
Read also: Ukrenergo implements blackouts in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast following Russian attack
The Russian military launched its most extensive attack of 2024 on Ukraine's energy system on the morning of March 22, targeting multiple oblasts with cruise and ballistic missiles, and drones.
Russia launched over 150 drones and missiles, including ballistic and cruise missiles. Air defense forces intercepted 92 of those targets.
Damage to infrastructure and energy facilities has been confirmed in Kharkiv, Dnipro, Zaporizhzhya, Kryvyi Rih, Vinnytsia, Khmelnytskyi, Ivano-Frankivsk, and Lviv oblasts.
Read also: Russia strikes passenger trolleybus with missile — ‘They were ordinary people traveling to work’
Russian forces targeted Ukraine's largest hydroelectric power station — Dnipro HPP in Zaporizhzhya — hitting a passenger trolleybus with people on board, Mariupol mayoral adviser Petro Andriushchenko reported previously. The strike caused a blaze to break out, and traffic on the dam was blocked.
Ukrhydroenergo said that there is no threat of dam breach.
The attack on the Dnipro HPP marks the most substantial strike on a facility thus far, with Russia aiming to completely disable the station, said the CEO of Ukrenergo, the Ukrainian national grid operator, Volodymyr Kudrytskyi.
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